University of North Carolina Athletics
GoHeels Exclusive: An Unforgettable Day For Taylor Koenen
January 26, 2019 | Women's Basketball, Featured Writers
By Pat James, GoHeels.com
Around this time last year, about midway through Taylor Koenen's sophomore season on the North Carolina women's basketball team, Bubba Cunningham and Sylvia Hatchell approached her with an opportunity.
Since 2015, student-athletes from the NCAA's five major conferences have been given a voice – and a vote – at every level of decision-making under the Division I autonomy process. Three student-athletes from each conference are chosen to vote on rule changes. And when Cunningham and Hatchell came to Koenen, they asked if she wanted to represent the ACC.
The opportunity was immediately appealing, Koenen said. But it became even more attractive after Hatchell pulled Koenen aside following their meeting with Cunningham.
"She said, 'I just think this would be a really big opportunity for you. You can make a lot of connections, you can network,'" Koenen remembered Hatchell saying. "She just kind of helped push me along and was like, 'I think you should try it.'"Â
That's all the convincing Koenen needed.
In the months that followed, she attended the NCAA Autonomy Governance Forum in Dallas and the ACC's spring meetings in Amelia Island, Fla. She also participated in about one conference call each month. The most recent was held last week, when she electronically voted on legislation focused on campus visits, complimentary admissions for athletic contests, and permissible nutritional supplements, among other proposals.
All the while, Koenen continued balancing her responsibilities as a starter for the Tar Heels and a student in the Kenan-Flagler Business School. But juggling those duties perhaps wasn't ever as difficult as it was this week.
On Wednesday, Koenen and Catherine Greene, the director of student-athlete enrichment for the women's basketball program, flew to Orlando, Fla., for the NCAA Convention. Koenen attended the fifth annual autonomy meeting on Thursday. She and Greene then boarded a plane for Blacksburg, Va., where Koenen helped UNC to a 81-69 win over Virginia Tech that night.
"I thought it was going to be a lot more stressful than it was," said Koenen on Friday. "I have a good support system with the coaches; Catherine was with me. They helped me get through it, and everything ended up working out."
But Koenen also deserves credit for her time management skills.
Knowing she'd be gone Thursday, she began the week by getting as far ahead in her classes as she could Monday, when classes weren't held for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. On Tuesday, she took over the team's Instagram account and gave followers a glimpse into the life of a student-athlete. Her flight to Orlando then left at about 6 p.m. Wednesday, right after practice.
Koenen's first meeting Thursday started at 8 a.m. Over three hours, she and the other members of the ACC Autonomy Committee discussed the conference's stance on the proposals that would be voted on later that day.
When she joined the ACC Autonomy Committee, Koenen knew she'd be able to influence the creation of rules and reforms. But she wasn't aware of how much pull she'd have. She said she's also learned how much student-athletes' opinions matter to the highest-ranking officials in every athletics department and conference office.Â
"They try to really help us," she said. "That was really cool to know we have a lot of people backing us and I guess just being hands on with it, too. If I don't like something, I can try to change it. Or if something is really good, we can try to enhance it to make it even better."
That was evident throughout Thursday's meetings.
After a break from 11 a.m.-noon, the autonomy session began. Representatives voted during it to require that institutions make mental health services and resources available for student-athletes. They also passed a resolution committing the five conferences to bring forward specific legislative proposals that will redefine agent and adviser rules to assist student-athletes with career planning and decision-making.
The former marked the most significant change. As of Aug. 1, schools will have to annually distribute mental health educational materials and resources to student-athletes, coaches, administrators and other athletics personnel. This includes a guide to the mental health resources available on that school's campus.Â
The mental health legislation passed unanimously, receiving votes from all 80 representatives.
"There were a lot of student-athletes who spoke out about how depression and suicide are among the leading causes of death," Koenen said, "and how a lot of student-athletes go through a lot of transitions when they come in freshman year. So, they thought it would be great to have those resources there for them rather than having student-athletes have to reach out or find them."
Around 2 p.m., the voting session ended. But Koenen's day was far from over.
She and Greene boarded their flight from Orlando moments later and arrived in Blacksburg at 4 p.m., three hours before tipoff. Along the way, Koenen grabbed a quesadilla and a smoothie from a Tropical Smoothie Cafe for an unconventional pregame meal.
She spent an hour at the team hotel before leaving for Cassell Coliseum. Although she missed the shootaround at the facility that morning, Koenen showed no signs of her pregame routine being disturbed, making a 3-pointer on her first shot of the game. She ultimately scored seven of Carolina's first 14 points on 3-for-3 shooting.
"I felt like I had a lot more energy," said Koenen, adding that not participating in shootaround might've kept her legs fresh. "I also have good teammates who were retrieving for me during warmups and made sure I was confident in my shot.Â
"When that (first shot) went through, it was really great."
Koenen finished the game with 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 37 minutes. Entering Sunday's home game against top-ranked Notre Dame, she's averaging 14.7 points over her last four games. She's 8-for-14 on 3-pointers in that span.
Hoping to play in the WNBA after graduating, she said she's unsure what she'll pursue a career in once she's done playing basketball. Perhaps she'll work in sports marketing. She might also entertain the idea of becoming a sports agent. But no matter what she does, she believes she'll benefit from her experience on the ACC Autonomy Committee.
"I really learned that in the business world, it's kind of everybody for themselves," she said. "No matter what your role is, how old you are or how new you are, you're expected to get it done. That was cool, and it made me grow up a lot."
Around this time last year, about midway through Taylor Koenen's sophomore season on the North Carolina women's basketball team, Bubba Cunningham and Sylvia Hatchell approached her with an opportunity.
Since 2015, student-athletes from the NCAA's five major conferences have been given a voice – and a vote – at every level of decision-making under the Division I autonomy process. Three student-athletes from each conference are chosen to vote on rule changes. And when Cunningham and Hatchell came to Koenen, they asked if she wanted to represent the ACC.
The opportunity was immediately appealing, Koenen said. But it became even more attractive after Hatchell pulled Koenen aside following their meeting with Cunningham.
"She said, 'I just think this would be a really big opportunity for you. You can make a lot of connections, you can network,'" Koenen remembered Hatchell saying. "She just kind of helped push me along and was like, 'I think you should try it.'"Â
That's all the convincing Koenen needed.
In the months that followed, she attended the NCAA Autonomy Governance Forum in Dallas and the ACC's spring meetings in Amelia Island, Fla. She also participated in about one conference call each month. The most recent was held last week, when she electronically voted on legislation focused on campus visits, complimentary admissions for athletic contests, and permissible nutritional supplements, among other proposals.
All the while, Koenen continued balancing her responsibilities as a starter for the Tar Heels and a student in the Kenan-Flagler Business School. But juggling those duties perhaps wasn't ever as difficult as it was this week.
On Wednesday, Koenen and Catherine Greene, the director of student-athlete enrichment for the women's basketball program, flew to Orlando, Fla., for the NCAA Convention. Koenen attended the fifth annual autonomy meeting on Thursday. She and Greene then boarded a plane for Blacksburg, Va., where Koenen helped UNC to a 81-69 win over Virginia Tech that night.
"I thought it was going to be a lot more stressful than it was," said Koenen on Friday. "I have a good support system with the coaches; Catherine was with me. They helped me get through it, and everything ended up working out."
But Koenen also deserves credit for her time management skills.
Knowing she'd be gone Thursday, she began the week by getting as far ahead in her classes as she could Monday, when classes weren't held for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. On Tuesday, she took over the team's Instagram account and gave followers a glimpse into the life of a student-athlete. Her flight to Orlando then left at about 6 p.m. Wednesday, right after practice.
Koenen's first meeting Thursday started at 8 a.m. Over three hours, she and the other members of the ACC Autonomy Committee discussed the conference's stance on the proposals that would be voted on later that day.
When she joined the ACC Autonomy Committee, Koenen knew she'd be able to influence the creation of rules and reforms. But she wasn't aware of how much pull she'd have. She said she's also learned how much student-athletes' opinions matter to the highest-ranking officials in every athletics department and conference office.Â
"They try to really help us," she said. "That was really cool to know we have a lot of people backing us and I guess just being hands on with it, too. If I don't like something, I can try to change it. Or if something is really good, we can try to enhance it to make it even better."
That was evident throughout Thursday's meetings.
After a break from 11 a.m.-noon, the autonomy session began. Representatives voted during it to require that institutions make mental health services and resources available for student-athletes. They also passed a resolution committing the five conferences to bring forward specific legislative proposals that will redefine agent and adviser rules to assist student-athletes with career planning and decision-making.
The former marked the most significant change. As of Aug. 1, schools will have to annually distribute mental health educational materials and resources to student-athletes, coaches, administrators and other athletics personnel. This includes a guide to the mental health resources available on that school's campus.Â
The mental health legislation passed unanimously, receiving votes from all 80 representatives.
"There were a lot of student-athletes who spoke out about how depression and suicide are among the leading causes of death," Koenen said, "and how a lot of student-athletes go through a lot of transitions when they come in freshman year. So, they thought it would be great to have those resources there for them rather than having student-athletes have to reach out or find them."
Around 2 p.m., the voting session ended. But Koenen's day was far from over.
She and Greene boarded their flight from Orlando moments later and arrived in Blacksburg at 4 p.m., three hours before tipoff. Along the way, Koenen grabbed a quesadilla and a smoothie from a Tropical Smoothie Cafe for an unconventional pregame meal.
She spent an hour at the team hotel before leaving for Cassell Coliseum. Although she missed the shootaround at the facility that morning, Koenen showed no signs of her pregame routine being disturbed, making a 3-pointer on her first shot of the game. She ultimately scored seven of Carolina's first 14 points on 3-for-3 shooting.
"I felt like I had a lot more energy," said Koenen, adding that not participating in shootaround might've kept her legs fresh. "I also have good teammates who were retrieving for me during warmups and made sure I was confident in my shot.Â
"When that (first shot) went through, it was really great."
Koenen finished the game with 11 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 37 minutes. Entering Sunday's home game against top-ranked Notre Dame, she's averaging 14.7 points over her last four games. She's 8-for-14 on 3-pointers in that span.
Hoping to play in the WNBA after graduating, she said she's unsure what she'll pursue a career in once she's done playing basketball. Perhaps she'll work in sports marketing. She might also entertain the idea of becoming a sports agent. But no matter what she does, she believes she'll benefit from her experience on the ACC Autonomy Committee.
"I really learned that in the business world, it's kind of everybody for themselves," she said. "No matter what your role is, how old you are or how new you are, you're expected to get it done. That was cool, and it made me grow up a lot."
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